Talking Transportation: Commuting while Wheelchair Bound
Commuting in a Wheelchair
You think you have a bad commute? Try doing Maclean Sarr’s hour and a half trip each way… in a wheelchair.
Unable to walk since contracting cerebral palsy as an infant, the 22-year-old Sarr is now a student at Gateway Community College in New Haven but lives in Westbrook. That means a 28-mile trip each way, in his motorized wheelchair, in a bus, a train and another bus.
Sarr lives within “walking distance” of the Westbrook station serving Shore Line East trains, but there are no sidewalks and too much traffic, so the Nine Towns Transit bus is his best option. Arriving at the “beautiful new (train) station” he drives his chair up a ramp and positions himself for the rear car of the train where his chair can be accommodated.
But last Monday when the train arrived, nobody could find the metal bridge plate to cover the six-inch gap between the platform and the railcar. So the train left without him. That’s when he went to Twitter.
I saw his cry for help and forwarded it to the right folks at CDOT who immediately contacted Amtrak (which operates Shore Line East trains) and addressed the issue. Thank you, CDOT!
But this incident got me thinking of what it must be like to commute without being able to walk. Chatting with Maclean, I found him to be smart, articulate and in no way bitter about his lot in life.
“It’s like an adventure every day,” he told me. “I don’t get out much, being something of a homebody,” so studying at Gateway is obviously the high point of his day.
Maclean travels alone without the assistance of an aide, juggling books and a laptop on his 500 pound motorized wheelchair. He doesn’t describe himself as handicapped and certainly not disabled, just “wheelchair bound”.
Bad weather is a challenge especially on icy surfaces. “I feel safe,” he says. “It just means you have to take extra time.” Heavy rain is more of a hassle as he can’t carry an umbrella but has to keep his chair’s joystick controls dry.
The reason Maclean and almost 3 million other wheelchair users in this country can get around is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) which became law in 1990 and turned transportation into a civil right. Any transit agency accepting Federal money to buy trains or buses must make them accessible.
“It’s hard enough to find a job let alone get there,” says Doug Holcomb of Greater Bridgeport Transit. “So many of these people have nobody to help them. Our paratransit service even takes people to the hospital.”
Organizations like The Kennedy Center in Trumbull offer free “travel training” courses for clients with all kinds of mobility challenges, from the physical (like being blind or unable to walk) to the emotional (phobias or inability to read a timetable). The mobility their clients have achieved has changed their lives.
How can we help a fellow commuter we might come across, someone who is blind, in a wheelchair or otherwise physically challenged?
“Ask first,” says Maclean. “Other commuters are very nice,” he says. “But they think they’re helping me when they may actually be getting in the way”.
Even if those in need decline your help, chat them up. You’ll enjoy getting to know your fellow commuters.
About Jim Cameron:
Jim Cameron has been a commuter advocate for over 30 years, with a special focus on the Metro North railroad. He spent nearly two decades on the Connecticut Metro North Commuter Council, and most recently founded The Commuter Action Group. Jim Cameron’s Talking Transportation was a popular column on the former WestportNow.com prior to its cessation, and joins The Westport Local Press and several other online community organizations. A resident of Darien - he serves on its Representative Town Meeting and is Program Director of the town government TV station, DarienTV79. He can be reached at CommuterActionGroup@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter: @CTRailCommuters
Monday Night Scene
Monday night’s sunset over Owenoke Park and Ned Dimes Marina. WestportLocal.com photo
Westport COVID-19 Cases Up 25 over Weekend; State Positivity Rate and Hospitalizations Continue Down
The State Department of Public Health reported 25 new COVID-19 cases for Westport over the weekend. The State’s daily test positivity rate decreased to 7.33% while hospitalizations were down as 141 more patients were released from hospitals, totaling 1,051 patients. 54.00% of those hospitalized are not fully vaccinated.
Westport total positive or probable cases: 3,628 cases.
Westport total COVID-19 Deaths: 34 deaths [+1]
State Daily Test Positivity: 7.33% [down from 9.73%]
State Hospitalizations: 1,192 patients [-78]
Firefighters Respond to Chimney Fire on Westway Road
Westport Fire Department photoWestport Fire Department:At approximately 4:32 PM, Westport units were dispatched to a report of a chimney fire at 32 Westway Road. The occupant reported that they observed flames on the exterior chimney of a wood burning stove. First arriving units reported a working fire on the rear outside wall of the house. After confirming that all occupants were out of the house, a hose line was stretched into the house. On scene, firefighters opened up walls on two floors of the house and found active fire burning on the first floor and extending up the walls into the second floor. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and checked for further fire spread.
No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Westport Fire Marshal’s Office. Mutual Aid was provided by Fairfield Fire Department for a rapid intervention team and Norwalk Fire Department for station coverage.
Staples Gymnastics Narrowly Loses To Darien
Staples Gymnastics on Friday was edged out by a talented Darien team by the score of 129.75 to 128.2.
It was a close meet from the start. Both teams are hoping to finish in the top seven to make the FCIAC tournament.
Darien had their season high team score for the year. Staples had some errors but battled the entire meet. As captain Mimi Schindler stated "it was our first loss of the season, but we always perform with great energy and team spirit. I am really proud of all the girls on this team, they work really hard."
Staples Meet highlights - Mia Guster won vault with a 9.5 (second highest score of her career) and Floor with a season high of 9.15. Sophomore Victoria Fidalgo won bars with a season high of 8.6. Freshman Sofia Alacron had a great all-around competition and finished third on beam.
Norwalk's (who competes with Staples) Alyssa Smeriglio had an excellent all around competition finishing with a 31.3
Up Next: Staples Gymnastics will compete on Tuesday February 2nd against Wilton and Thursday against New Canaan.
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Morning Weather Report
Today
Mostly sunny, with a high near 31. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. Light and variable wind becoming east around 5 mph in the afternoon.
Tonight
Partly cloudy, with a low around 17. Calm wind becoming northeast around 6 mph after midnight.
Tomorrow
Mostly sunny, with a high near 36. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. East wind 6 to 8 mph.
Tomorrow Night
Mostly cloudy, with a steady temperature around 31. Light northeast wind.
Low Temperatures at the Levitt
Temperatures slowly dropped this afternoon as the sun began to dip into the West, with brilliant skies remaining over the Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts. WestportLocal.com photo
Just Ducky
Open waters and an incoming tide allowed for a calm dinner hour for local ducks in the Downtown section of the Saugatuck. WestportLocal.com photo
Icey Blues
An ice covered Saugatuck River along Saxon Lane brought on blue sky reflections this afternoon. WestportLocal.com photo
Opening Night For Two New Exhibitions at MoCA Westport Draws Large Crowd
Friday night MoCA Westport hosted an opening reception for two new exhibitions, the Westport Idea and its Annual High School exhibition, Identity.
Friday night MoCA Westport hosted an opening reception for two new exhibitions which drew about 200 visitors, one of which was it’s Annual High School exhibition, Identity. The Westport Idea features selections from WestPAC holdings of more than 2,000 artworks at a public venue. Most of these works are housed in public schools and municipal buildings, not always accessible to the public.
The Museum's Annual High School exhibition features close to 200 compelling works focused on the theme of Identity, created by student artists from across CT and Westchester, NY.
The exhibitions are on view through March 12, 2022. Free docent-led tours are available and free supporting Cocktails and Conversation events will be held on Thursday evenings. Visit mocawestport.org to learn more.
Drawing much attention was Staples sophomore Logan Goodman's "interactive" exhibit, "Hide & Seek" which required using the LED ultraviolet flashlight to find the hidden message on her sneakers.
Shekaiba Bennett, an AP photography teacher from Greenwich High School had 11 students exhibiting their work in the Identity exhibition.She is pictured here with Liz Leggett, MoCA Westport's Director of Exhibitions alongside Lynsey Addario's photo taken in Afghanistan. Shekaiba was about the same age as the young girl in the photo when she and her family fled Afghanistan 43 years earlier when the Russians invaded her country.
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocal.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
